This scenario was played over Skype in 3 sessions against PGHQ member, Nebelwurfer. It was his first dual player PG match-up after some 70+ solo games. The scenario was picked as one of a choice of three sent for selection and had not been played by either player before. The situation represented is that of a out-gunned British force having to try and stem the advance of a mainly German force but with Italian back up not far behind. The Axis have more foot troops, the better tanks, some OBA and regular aircraft support. The British have equally moraled troops with which to put up some form of defence, but on paper, the balance of the scenario looks very much against them.

The Axis forces, whose aim is to exit 10 steps at the other end of the long map enter the battlefield area faced with a British enemy that has fanned out across the front in a linear formation. The British main strength seems to have been the placement of their armour on the flanks and a nasty HMG force blocking the only road running straight through the battlefield. As the Germans began the advance towards this enemy, they fully expected to see the British frantically digging-in readying themselves for the Axis attack. Instead, with great surprise, they saw this weaker enemy begin an advance towards them in a bid to get on the higher ground. Once this initial surprise had passed, the Germans gathered themselves to destroy in detail this very bold inferior British force.

The German PzIII’s jostled into a position to start loosing shots off at range against the British Crusaders and Stuarts and also made sure their two 88 flak batteries and 50mm AT battery were positioned in order to take advantage of any enemy tanks that would render themselves spotted once they fired their own guns at the German tanks. The ruse worked and before long, British armour was becoming shredded pretty quickly, along with many Bren carriers that happened to get in the way as well.

The two sides infantry also began to battle for the high ground, but here too, although a slow whittling pro cess, the Germans began to gain the upper hand. Also, Italians had entered and their infantry forces began to stream out along the Axis right flank. With the main battle for the high ground going the German way, another infantry force composed of the German infantry in turn pushed along the left flank ensuring the British could never stretch their thinning forces to cover both flanks. Despite good British resistance on the hills, they were eventually out-gunned, all the more so with such a vast initiative difference that had been formed due to heavy British casualties. To put it mildly, the British force was eventually destroyed in detail with many Axis steps making their way up the other end of the map. Eventually, the 10 German infantry steps exited easily and the battle was up.

It had been a bloody baptism for this British force suffering a massive 51 step-losses to just 1 German infantry step. When I totted up the damage and 'pictured' the battlefield in my mind, I just saw this horrible vision of burnt wrecks, corpses et al and they were all British ! A pure horrid devastation of what was once a fighting force. The scenario to be fair, should not be that one sided. British step-losses came in at 20 Foot steps, 5 Officers, 18 AFV, 8 APC and 5 Ordnance. It gets a ‘2’ rating for me as I can not see how the allies can win this one. If they ever do, I’d like to see the AAR. Maybe an experienced Brit player against a newbie Axis might do it.